We never used pads. Loki went outside from the day we got him and he was pretty reliable by 10 months and 100% by a year. (He had some UTIs and other bladder issues so that's pretty good! He was OK if I took him out all the time, by reliable I meant he would let ME know...) I would never use pads. I know some people have to work all day... but I don't think that a Yorkie puppy should be left alone all day even with pads. A dog walker or doggie daycare, or even a neighbor, would be necessary. We waited until our schedules were flexible before getting him and on days when we can't let him out I drop him off at the trainer's.
When you are training you do have to let them out like every hour until they can learn to tell you they need to go. And you have to watch them every second. And sometimes you have to stand outside for 10 minutes waiting for them to poop! (Once Loki got the hang of it he rarely spent more than 2 minutes outside.) Some people here think I am crazy, but it's all worth it to me. I know I've had people on here ask what you do when your dog doesn't use pads and needs to pee in the middle of the night. Um, you let them out. Then you go back to sleep. Not a big deal!! But some people act like it is. I guess my thought is that if you want a dog with an iron bladder get a Lab. I am allergic to just about every other breed so I feel fortunate just to have a DOG. Getting up in the middle of the night once in a while is a small price to pay. Yorkies have to pee twice as often as big dogs. They are small. It makes sense. It's not a huge deal.
Oh, and it snows here too! And we don't have a fence so Loki goes outside on a leash... |